Welcome to the weekend view.
Birthday Boy
Jionni recently celebrated his birthday and so a party was in order for this weeks family dinner.
The party was full of fun and laughs- it was a medieval theme so there were lots of foam swords and little crowns and viking hats. These two had fun playing with balloons and staring out at all the crazy wind and rain.
And Juliette was right in there with the sword fighting and of course, enjoying cupcakes.
Chicken Wheelchairs
We built a couple of chicken wheelchairs this week for 2 of our silkie chickens that are having some weakness in their legs and trouble walking. This was the prototype we started with using chicken ‘bags’ that you can help them walk in as seats for the frame- so just held in place with clips at the moment.
Unfortunately, most veterinarians don’t treat chickens so I have been chatting with some chicken experts in a forum about what could possibly be causing these two to not be able to walk. Most of them feel it is vitamin deficiency related. Which we aren’t 100% sure on but the whole flock is not affected thankfully. But as mentioned- without a vet that could take a look, the forums and Facebook groups are amazing and they suggest to try different things. To fix it requires supplementing with a large amount of vitamins over several months so we have been loading them up on vitamins in an effort to hopefully help get them up and running again. In the meantime, we built these ‘wheelchairs’ so that they could be sitting upright & start gaining some strength by having their legs out underneath them on the ground like they are standing. Plus, I think it may help them mentally to be up in a usual position rather than just sitting- they are eating as usual, chatter and don’t look sick- they just can’t get around. We will add wheels once they are able to start pushing off and bearing weight. If any of you are chicken experts and have any idea of what is going on- would love your thoughts and any help with getting these 2 sweet silkies well.
Slow Living January
I have been really slowing my workload this month to start the year off with an intention of living more intentionally rather than a crazy pace. One of my daily indulges that definitely fuels the slower pace-since I am a big bath loving kind of girl -a nightly soak and I like to add a cup of epsom salts as well. My favorite is this one in eucalyptus spearmint. For the shower- I also like this epsom salt scrub as well. *affiliate links
Coming your way this week- creating a vision board to help you focus on your goals and more. Happy Weekend everyone.
MARY-ANN (FROM CANADA) says
Courtney, i sure hope that your 2 little silkies will soon be on the mend and able to walk again. it’s so good that they have you and your hubby to nurse them back to health. i like those chairs you made for them! such a great idea!
your little grands are so cute in the pictures! thanks for sharing those sweet kids!
Cassandra E says
If you’re on a forum, you’ve probably already gotten lots of possible answers. One thing that comes to mind, in case no one mentioned it is worms. My friend’s chicken went down, they thought they would lose her. She was weak and lethargic. Turned out it was worms. They treated the whole flock and she’s good as new.
Hope you find a solution. We love our flock.
Beatrice says
Riboflavin (B2) and Niacin (B3) deficiency will cause weak legs. I had 2 banties come out of the eggs unable to stand up…feed hard-boiled egg, spinach, Good news is that if they can walk at all, it’s probably not Marek’s.
Melanie says
courtney, you’re an occupational therapist at heart, well done with the adaptive equipment for the chickens to improve their strength and quality of life:)
Aussie Jo says
You have done well
franki parde says
That ceretainly is a puzzle about the chickens…we were raised on a farm with chickens, ducks, geese, etc. and do not recall this phenomena… We just installed my copper swedish slipper soaking tub…LUV IT!!! Cute kiddos, too! franki
Diana says
I hope the silkies are better soon. I hate when animals are unwell. The grands are so cute and messy. LOL Looked like they had big fun.